Thursday, December 13, 2012

Quick update: I just want to thank the CSI Project for choosing this as one of the winners! Thanks, guys!!

I was digging around online and came across this amazing site called the CSI Project. It is seriously amazing and I immediately fell in love. I also saw they were doing a creative gift wrap challenge, which is awesome because I very creatively wrapped my presents this year. I got pumped. SUPER pumped. Until later in the day when they posted their first tutorial of the week. Cute, huh? Yeah. That's pretty much what I had already done.

I suck. At least my tag was original.

So in an effort to actually be creative, I started thinking of how I could wrap the rest of my presents not just creatively, but in a more original fashion. Super awesome Hannah Montana gift wrap from a few years ago? Nah (though that stuff is awesome, maybe even too awesome). Keep my awesome tags and go with a rustic look? Been done. For a minute I thought about saying scew it and just submitting my Santa wrap. The idea didn't come to me until I actually started on another project, which was more coasters only using some old comic books. I dug around the basement, found the comic books, and got all set up. I started flipping through a Batman comic when I realized it took place somewhere around Christmas. Gears started turning until I came up with my theme: comic book/superhero gift wrap. And I'm not talking about buying the gift wrap that has a million little Batmans or Spidermans printed all over it. I mean going all out nerd and turning the presents into superheroes!

I started by cutting out my favorite scenes from the Batman comic and a Flash comic, and Mod Podging them to some cardstock (decided not to do this with the Flash comic, just left it as is). Then I printed out some different wording to make it a little more Christmas-themed and funnier, and adhered the wording to the scenes (and I could have done a better job sizing, but I really just didn't feel like it).

Using Inkscape (you can use Photoshop or whatever you have available), I created some name tags in the style of the old school comic book action words and Mod Podged them to the backs of the comic scenes. Once dried, I punched a hole in the corners so I could hang them from the presents.

As for the actual gift wrap, I went to the store and found solid blue wrapping paper to use in addition to the paper I already had. After wrapping the Batman present, I used my black ribbon as a "belt" and tied it around the package. I printed out the Batman logo and stuck it in the center, then used a bit of twine to tie on the gift tag. For the Flash, I printed the logo, Mod Podged it on, and used the ribbon to do a bow at the top.

My favorite one, I saved for last. I couldn't just settle for two superheroes, and since you can't talk superheroes without Superman, I had to use him. But I didn't want to just stick his logo on the package and call it a day, so I thought to myself, "Self, how cool would it be to have a present that's being ripped open to reveal the logo? Like when he rips his shirt off to reveal his outfit?" Well, this happened...

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You're welcome, world.

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The best part is you can do this with just about any superhero. How about some thinner black ribbon and a spider cut-out on red wrapping paper for a Spiderman fan? Oh yeah, this could get really awesome. Hope you guys enjoyed!

Thanks again to the CSI Project for such an awesome challenge! Hope to do some more!

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Even though I rarely if ever have time for it anymore, I love reading. And by that, I mean actual books, not just stuff online. I've been loyal to my paperbacks and just can't find it in me to switch to an e-reader. There's just something about holding the actual book in your hands, something satisfying about turning that last page, and an e-reader can't replace that.

While browsing online, I ran into quite a few different project ideas that all involved reusing old books, and with a couple books on my shelf that were falling apart and doing nothing more than collecting dust, I thought I would put them to a better use. The first book I grabbed off my shelf was How to Read a Book by Mortimer Adler. How fitting. I had bought it years ago while thrifting and read through most of it, though a few of the pages towards the end were missing. The book was beat up pretty bad, pages were yellowed and could very easily fall out (or apart). In other words, it was totally and completely perfect for what I had planned.

My first project? Coasters. You know those tile coasters that are everywhere? I love them because they're heavy and make it much harder for our cat to knock off the table.

"What are you talking about? I am an extremely dignified cat who would NEVER do such things!"

I didn't want to just cover them with book pages though, I wanted them to be a little more unique and have more design to them. So I hunted around online and found some images that I really liked, simple images that were either already solid colored or could easily be Photoshopped, and printed them directly on some of the book pages. I also found a cheap photo book and clipped out some of the images I really liked. Then I grabbed my Mod Podge, some felt, and went to work.

I glued the pages to the tile using Mod Podge, and once dry I applied a coat to the top. For the coasters with images from another book, I gently placed them after I applied the top coat. I let them dry for at least 30 minutes between each coat and added several layers to each. As of the time I took the pictures, I haven't sealed them, but will be doing so before using them (just haven't decided if I want to use polyurethane or a spray acrylic sealer yet. Decisions, decisions!). A little Mod Podge on the back to stick the felt on like so:

... and you're ready to go! You can also use cork or those little felt pads that are precut, but this is the most inexpensive way and doesn't look too bad if I say so myself! And there you have it. Pretty easy to make, and affordable, and easy to customize in whatever fashion you want. Print off pictures, use old books or magazines, or whatever kind of paper you want. For my next set, I think I want to use some original vector art that I made. Oh yeah, and these make great gifts! I'm making extras to pack into goodie boxes for family this year. Great compliment to homemade hot cocoa and truffles, right?

Sunday, December 9, 2012

I've been holding on to a recipe for a few weeks that I really wanted to try, and finally got around to it this weekend! Easy? Yes. Delicious? Oh god yes. Make this, and make a lot of it. Funfetti cake batter fudge. Adorable, easy, good, and oh did I mention easy? Because I really like easy, especially after a weekend of baking a very frustrating cake (and failing to decorate it the way I had seen in my mind). We packed up some of these, along with some truffles and dipped Ritz sandwiches, and dropped them off while visiting with family tonight.

Line a 9x13 inch pan with parchment paper and spray with non-stick cooking spray.

In a large bowl, mix cake mix and sugar. Place butter, cut into squares, and milk in the bowl. Microwave for 2 minutes and immediately mix to combine all ingredients. If you want to add more sprinkles, do so at this time. Spread mix in your pan with a spatula, top with some sprinkles if desired (use spatula to push them down a bit and help them stick). Refrigerate for at least one hour.

Remove from the pan, cut 'em up, and dip them in some melted chocolate. Sure, you can do without the chocolate, but why would you?? Enjoy!

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

One of my favorite scents is cinnamon, and one of my favorite things about this time of the year is walking into the grocery store and immediately being hit over the head with the smell of cinnamon from the scented pine cones they place by the doors. I love that stuff! We usually use those Glade plug-ins at home, and they smell good and all, but they're just not the same. So this year, I decided I wanted some pine cones, but I didn't have anything to put them in. Pinterest to the rescue! I found a pin where someone used a clay planter to hold the pine cones, and I just happened to have a clay planter left over from our failed attempt to grow tomatoes at our old apartment.

Would have been simple enough, but the planter was a bit stained up, even after washing it out, and it just wasn't quite holiday decor enough, so I decided to paint it up a la Santa's fat ol' belly. A little spray paint, some acrylic paint, and a buckle made from glitter paper later, and voila!

Oh, and since I had already bought two bags of pine cones and that wasn't quite enough, I used some left over paper to fill in the bottom of the planter a bit. Here's the how-to for anyone interested:

Start with a clean planter. Lay down a bunch of newspaper (WAY more than I did, please) or a drop cloth outside and set the planter in the middle.

Spray paint the inside and rim of the planter, and let it dry completely. Once it's dry, if you need to add another coat, do so and then dry completely again. I used a fairly fast drying Krylon and only had to wait around 30 minutes between coats.

Once completely dry, flip the planter over and coat the outside. I ended up giving it around 3-4 coats total, let the coats dry before adding additional coats. Let it dry completely outside before bringing it in. Ignore the beat up trash can, it was windy as crap out.

It should be nice and shiny and bright once it's all dry. Find a good spot and set up shop. My fiance set up a desk in our basement so that we can have a place where we don't have to worry about paint/glue/tears staining up our floors or table upstairs. Isn't it so pretty and not dungeon looking??

You'll want to grab some black acrylic paint...

And some painter's tape...

And tape off, starting where you would like the upper part of the belt to start. Make sure to press the tape down firmly so that paint won't leak through.

I used some pre-glittery gold scrapbook paper to make the buckle, but you can use another paper if you'd like as well. Measure it out and cut it to the size that you would like. Mine is approximately three inches by three inches. Plug in your glue gun at this time to get it warmed up.

Use the buckle as a guide for how low you should place the second strip of tape. You'll want it to be at least as wide as the opening in the buckle.

Tape all the way along, pressing down firmly again to secure.

Using a small to medium sized brush and your black acrylic paint, carefully apply a coat within your taped area. Allow to dry completely before adding a secondary coat, if necessary (I only needed one coat). Let dry for at least 1 to 2 hours.

When the paint has dried, slowly remove the painter's tape.

Apply glue to the back of the buckle (work fast).

Place the buckle on the planter and press down to ensure the glue sticks to it well.

Monday, December 3, 2012

I guess this is my first real post, since the other one was short, stupid, and had nothing to do with me making anything or any stuff. So what do I have for you guys? Well, it's the holidays, so I've been making a whole lot of holiday decorations. We normally keep a vase on our entertainment center next to our TV, and I thought it would be fun to make something Christmas-y to replace it for the month. I happened to see a post on Pintrest of four boxes stacked together, spelling out "Noel". I thought that would be pretty awesome, since it was the same size and would fit perfectly next to the TV. The link from Pintrest was selling them for an ungodly amount of money, and since I was already planning on making something with Noel on it, I went and got some boxes, wrapping paper, music note scrapbook paper, ribbon, and Mod Podge and went to work. The result?

I'm more than happy with it, I'm freakin' in love with it! Pretty easy to make too, which is great. Just print out the letters on some music note scrapbook paper, wrap the boxes using a bit of Mod Podge, glue the letters to the boxes, add a bit of ribbon, and tada! I ended up gluing the boxes together so they wouldn't fall, and I weighed the bottom one down with part of an old shirt (wish I would have used something a little heavier, but it's still pretty stable). This would be a great way to use old Kleenex boxes, which was my original intention, but I was one short.